Academic Staff Welfare and Job Performance in Federal Universities in South-South Geopolitical Zone of Nigeria

<div> The study investigated the relationship between academic staff welfare and their job performance in federal universities in South-South, geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The welfare of academic staff is a critical factor in determining their job satisfaction, motivation and overall performance. However, from the literature reviewed so far it was observed that the relationship between academic staff welfare and their job performance has not been given adequate attention in the context of incentive package, office accommodation, internet facilities, electricity, and healthcare system in federal universities in South-South. This study aimed to bridge this gap by examining the relationship between these variables. Five specific purpose, five research questions and five null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. Two motivational theories directed the study Herzberg’s motivation two-factor theory 1959 and Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs 1943. And correlational research design was adopted, while the population of the study consists of 7,506 academic staff in the six federal universities in South-South. The sample size was 245 respondents. Two research instruments validated by three research experts were used to elicit data for the study. Pearson product moment correlation was used in answering the research questions and testing of the five null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed that there is significant relationship between academic staff welfare and their job performance in federal universities in South-South, though with some of the variables showing a weak relationship. It was recommended among others that, federal government should develop and implement a competitive incentive packages to motivate academic staff in federal universities in South-South, focusing on monetary and non-monetary rewards. </div> <div> <br> </div>